[1] "Coast scene, with ruined buildings and bridges, boats and figures in the foreground." The dimensions, 48 x 70 in., match the National Gallery's painting exactly, but this general description could also apply to a lost pendant or even another version. A marginal notation in the Knoedler fiche copy of the catalogue gives the buyer as "Mostyn." Algernon Graves, Art Sales from Early in the Eighteenth Century to Early in the Twentieth Century, 3 vols., London, 1918-1921: 1:383, gives the buyer as "Lawson" and lists an incorrect sale date.

[2] According to the Hearn sale catalogue.

[3] A marginal notation in the NGA copy of the Hearn catalogue lists Bernet as "agent," perhaps for Winter.

[4] Art Prices Current, n.s. 20 (1941-1942): no. 1130.

[5] The original prospectus in the NGA curatorial files bears the Schaeffer Galleries' stamp. There is a reference to a Guardi Capriccio, no. 675, in the Schaeffer Gallery Records at the Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles, but no stock card.

Exhibition History

The Glory of Venice: Art in the Eighteenth Century, Royal Academy of Arts, London; National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.; Museo del Settecento Veneziano - Ca'Rezzonico, Venice, 1994-1995, not in cat. (shown only in Washington in 1995).

Technical Summary

The support consists of two pieces of loosely woven plain-weave fabric joined with a vertical seam. The ground is a reddish-brown layer. The paint film is smooth and was applied in thin layers; the lighter passages show a slightly thicker buildup of paint. The ground was incorporated into the image, mainly in the foreground but also in the architecture. Dark glazes were applied over the ground to model the details of the temple, the ruins, and other elements. The architectural details were defined with calligraphic strokes of thin black paint. The sky was painted first with reserves left for the foreground, the architecture at right, and the large tower in the center. The smaller details in the distance were painted directly over the blue-white of the sky. The figures and the foreground were painted at the same time.

The tacking margins have been removed and cusping is visible only along the bottom and right edges. A rectangle measuring 26 x 67 cm was cut out of the lower-left corner of the support and reinserted; the edges of the vertical join do not match precisely. There are paint losses along the bottom edge and small areas of inpainting throughout. Overall abrasion has made the ground much more visible than intended, especially in the sky, which has taken on a dark reddish brown tonality. The dark glazes in the architecture and foreground are extensively abraded. The varnish is clear. In 1943 the painting was relined, discolored varnish was removed, and the painting was restored by Stephen Pichetto. The most recent treatment was carried out by Mario Modestini, who removed discolored varnish and restored the painting in 1959.